Chapter 371

"Hey? True Wei, where are you going?"

Qin's mother called out to her in surprise.

"Go to Satsuki's place."

Ouka Mai her head in confusion.

As far as she knew, they still lived in the same place as before.

"We don't live there anymore, okay?"

The mother's smile froze; she hadn't expected her daughter to be so unaware of this. It seemed she had truly quarreled with her daughter.

"Talent — Talent Young Master arranged staff housing for us, so Kazusa Satsuki and I are currently living in this apartment."

"Not only is it much more convenient for her to go to work, but it's also much more convenient for her to go to school! Isn't that amazing?!"

"Hi~ Here's your elevator card. Just take the elevator up. The room number is 4601, and the password is Satsuki- chan's birthday, eight digits long~"

Ouka Mai accepted the gift with both Hands, her expression blank, the excitement from her recent intimate encounter with her "lover" gradually cooling. "... Thank you."

Numbly, he turned around and walked back the way he came, his back view somewhat desolate.

"Are you alright?"

Qin's mother furrowed her brows, becoming slightly worried.

Beep beep beep...

After entering the password, an electronic gear sounded, the lock retracted, and she opened the thick, soundproof door, unlike the cheap, thin wooden doors of ordinary apartments.

She first glanced around at the interior, which seemed to have a layout similar to that of an ordinary apartment, then stepped into the entryway and put on the familiar guest slippers she had brought from the old apartment.

She chuckled softly and touched her chin with her finger, a sense of familiarity and a comforting nostalgia washing over her.

"Mom, why are you back...?"

Hearing the Koto Satsuki came out of the room and stopped abruptly when she saw Ouka Mai.

"Yay~ Ah~ Satsuki, good evening."

Ouka Mai greeted her as if nothing had happened.

That's pretty much true. In her eyes, what happened before was nothing at all; it was just a quarrel at most.

Even if Koto Satsuki harbors resentment towards her and plans to "take revenge" on her, she won't care; she'll just treat it as her usual prank.

"True Wei... why are you back? Didn't you say you were going to be in France for the entire Golden Week?"

Koto Satsuki awkwardly rested one hand on her other elbow, her brows slightly furrowed.

She was slightly damp, her skin was rosy, and she was wearing a nightgown, so she must have just taken a shower.

Although she had previously scolded her impulsively, since the other party had taken the initiative to "admit defeat" and come to her door, she couldn't help but forgive her...

"I missed my lover so much that I came back early! I just came down from Talent's place and stopped by to see you. I got the room code from your aunt."

Due to her personality and the long-standing relationship between the two, Ouka Mai recounted the whole story without any reservations.

"... I see."

Koto Satsuki swallowed the words she was about to say.

How stupid of me to think that this handsome, arrogant person would apologize on their own initiative!

Ouka Mai treated this place like her own home, walking straight past her and into her room. "Hmm~ Isn't this pretty good! It's much better than the previous room, congratulations, Satsuki!"

The room that Koto Satsuki and the others are in now is, of course, completely different from the one they were in before.

Not only has the area increased several times, but the bed is no longer Tatami, but a large bed with its own mattress. It is fully furnished with furniture such as a wardrobe, desk, and small sofa. Even the view outside the window is a panoramic view of the city at night.

Because it's on the side of the building, the view is quite expansive, almost as good as Ouka Mai's house—and even higher.

"Ha~ I'm already used to her doing things her own way," Koto Satsuki sighed inwardly, without saying anything.

"Satsuki, what were you doing just now?"

Ouka Mai turned around and asked.

"Study."

"Ah~ speaking of which, midterms are this month. Are you already preparing for that so early? Impressive, impressive~"

She moved closer and stroked the top of Koto Satsuki's head.

"Even if you work this hard, I'll still be number one next time!"

"Tsk!"

Koto Satsuki slapped her hand away and gave her a cold look, her expression haughty. "Although it's not for that reason, it's not wrong for you to think that way."

This guy!!! This guy!!!

Why did I become friends with this guy in the first place?

Koto Satsuki gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, feeling an urge to use force—even though she was no match for her opponent in physical strength.

"Since you've moved here, wouldn't it be nice to relax and enjoy yourself first? No one will blame you."

Ouka Mai offered her suggestion without any ill intent.

"Reading is a habit and hobby I've had since childhood; it's not something I need to avoid."

Koto Satsuki's voice gradually cooled down.

"You're really serious... By the way, did you just take a shower?"

Ouka Mai lay sprawled on her bed, propping her head up and looking up at her.

"Is that so?"

"Hmph~ Me too~"

Ouka Mai curled her lips into a smile, proudly raising the clothing bag in her hand, unable to resist showing it off to her. "And with my lover!"

"..."

Koto Satsuki stared at the bag in her hand, and only now could she see what was inside.

"... The lover you're talking about, could it be Talent?"

"What are you talking about? Is there anyone else? I'm not that kind of woman."

"... What about that outfit?"

"The clothes I wore when I came here before, the ones I'm wearing now, were given to me by him!"

"So, you already know..."

Looking at the well-fitting, somewhat women's-style coat she was wearing, Koto Satsuki hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't.

Could this be that "woman's" clothes...?

"No, I don't know his size yet, because I heard that he bought this unisex jacket too small. What's wrong?"

She looked down at her clothes with satisfaction, finding them even more pleasing to the eye than anything else in her wardrobe. She decided to keep them for her important date.

"... No, it's nothing."

Koto Satsuki looked away with a complicated expression, then scoffed indifferently, "Really? But it seems like he doesn't consider you his lover yet, right? Or rather, what tricks did you use to get him to agree to be with you?"

Although she wanted to tell her the truth, she needed to keep her employer's information confidential. She wasn't the kind of person to repay kindness with enmity, and besides, he had some leverage over her.

But... this doesn't seem so bad?

She looked back at her with a playful expression; the feeling of knowing the secret she most wanted to know a step ahead—it was the best!

It's almost as satisfying as defeating her head-on!

"As expected of Satsuki, she really understands me!"

Ouka Mai wasn't angry; instead, she looked at her with considerable satisfaction. "But that's only a matter of time. Although he's very stubborn, I can sense that day isn't far off."

"This time... I pretended I had already left, and then went in while he was taking a bath."

"You..."

Koto Satsuki stared at her with wide, incredulous eyes. "What you're doing is getting closer and closer to breaking the law and committing crimes!"

"Do you really understand? If your genders were reversed, you'd be in jail right now!"

"What does it matter! Anyway, although Talent verbally refused, she was never angry with me!"

"That's because he can't do anything about you; actually, he really dislikes you."

Koto Satsuki crossed her Hands and turned her aloof, beautiful profile to sneer.

"No, that's impossible! He probably just likes me but is too shy to say it!"

Ouka Mai shook his head in denial.

"... Did he ever say that your arrogant personality is troublesome?"

Koto Satsuki remained utterly speechless.

"And there's more!"

Ignoring Koto Satsuki's feelings, she impatiently continued speaking.

It's hard not to suspect that her purpose in coming here tonight was simply to find someone to confide in.

And her only close friend, Koto Satsuki, was that pitiful, only object of affection...

"While in the bathroom, I even helped him..."

She told her everything that had just happened, revealing Sakurakoji Talent without any concealment or embarrassment.

"..."

Koto Satsuki walked to the bedside and sat down, feeling a little dizzy.

What this woman did was beyond her expectations, so outrageous that she even considered calling the police on Sakurakoji Talent's behalf... But based on what she read in the book, he was probably actually quite happy at the time, right?

Chapter 385 Heading to the Place Where Lilies Bloom.

"So? You came here today just to tell me about your crimes?"

Koto Satsuki looked at her indifferently.

"Ah~! That's roughly it! And I'll check you out while I'm at it."

Ouka Mai, completely oblivious to the concept of subtlety, nodded happily.

Although she is a perfect young lady with maxed-out reading skills in public, she basically doesn't keep that mask in front of people she's close to.

Conversely, although to outsiders, Koto Satsuki appears to be a clear "simp," Ouka Mai no less devoted in her feelings, just in a different way.

"..."

Koto Satsuki's gaze turned even colder as she looked at her.

"What a pity, Satsuki! I've already found the best lover in the world before you! When it comes to lovers, you can never compare to me!"

Ouka Mai shrugged, oblivious to the smug expression on her face.

"..."

"But even if we weren't lovers, you could never catch up to me, for example, in your studies..."

"..."

"But keep going! Even if you can never beat me, it's still amazing to keep trying to catch up—even though you'll never win!"

"..."

After a period of conversation interspersed with occasional sarcasm.

"Call..."

With eyes as cold as ice blades, Koto Satsuki let out a long breath and stood up to walk towards her.

"You'd better get back here today!!!"

"Haha~ Why are you still angry? Well, Yi, let's call it a day for now, see you when school starts~!"

As Koto Satsuki pushed her out of the room, she smiled and blinked her cute big eyes, bidding a friendly farewell as if it were none of her business.